Everything is Better with Pets

I feel like the more I blog, the more my blogs bleed together. They bleed into my creative writing, too; for example, the science fiction screenplay I’m writing for the NYC screenwriting challenge is a political commentary on “curing” autism spectrum and other fringe identities.

Value of Therapy Pets for Autistic People

One thing I’m certain that’s remained consistent in my autistic life—and I’m certain, will continue to remain consistent during my time as this collection of atoms, on this little blue dot—my absolute 💖🧡💛love for animals.💙💚💜

I know the societal standard is to value humans above our “lesser intelligent” mammalians, (which then rank above the other “lesser intelligent” life forms,) but I’ve never felt comfortable with that mental framework.

I used to hug trees in elementary school. (Reason #79 I was bullied.) One summer, when I found my friend torching ants with his magnifying glass, I took his weapon from him.

I catch spiders under drinking glasses, then slip paper under them, so I can lay them in the bushes outside. I can’t do this without my heart thudding out of my neck, but I do it anyway, because Charlotte’s Web.

When I eat a burger, (especially a lower-quality burger, like my McDonald’s road trip ritual,) (road trips are the only times I eat McDonald’s,) I think of Temple Grandin fixing the beef industry with her autistic superpowers.

I sing to our cats, fish, and birds as part of cohabitating with them. If they’re scratching furniture, I cat-proof the furniture with a blanket. If I need to nap a migraine, I seek out places where a cat’s already stretched out, and I cuddle with them there, rather than expecting them to find my lap.

In the process of always loving animals, they’ve in turn become a stable source of therapy for me. Their social rules are easy to follow, especially if you respect their individual choices. They listen if you need to talk, and they don’t need you to talk if you want to stay in your mind. When meditating, they gravitate around you in support. They greet you when you come home, and wish you a good day when you leave.

Again, this sensitivity to the simplicity and warmth of the animal kingdom sometimes extends to complex objects, like the vehicles we drive. I’m fascinated by Tesla and Elon Musk because their cars are like the next step in artificial life.

My 2004 Lancer (Blue Yoshi), I purchased brand new, drove for 12 years, then mourned for days after it smoked and the tow truck took it away. Though my 2017 Versa (Duke Cranky, or DuCrae) has been the spotlight for some anxiety-inducing stories, it’s led to many beautiful memories as well, and I also consider it one of the complex structures of atoms that supports my everyday life.

As a child, when I watched my father working on his Volkswagen beetle, I marveled at how he reached his fingers inside the body of that artificial creature. He was like a surgeon covered in blood, returning to the apartment splattered in oil, the fluids of the future.

Today’s Autism Video

3 Takeaways

Because dogs and cats communicate with us by observing our nonverbal and social-emotional behavior—and autistic people almost always have some form of communication issue—dogs and cats can act as bridges between the neurotypical world and autistic world, similar to how I use writing and reading to try to bridge gaps in my relationships and understand the world better;

Golden retrievers and lab-retriever mixes seem to be popular as autistic service dogs because of their calmness;

Therapy dogs can help reduce aggression in autistic children; I’m thinking this is because meltdowns and shutdowns are typically the result of anxiety attacks and sensory stimulation issues, and a dog will pick up on shifts in anxiety and stimulation prior to overload.

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Oh, I love this! We’ve been talking about building a koi pond for our backyard. This year’s project was the chicken coop, but next year, it might have to happen. Maleficent, our koi betta, is my koi heroine for now. 🙂

I have 4 existing koi pond and I started building 3 more this year. I work on it every weekends. I grow vegetables along side the koi ponds. here is the video that I had uploaded today https://youtu.be/M6up-yRm404